1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure pertains to devices for massaging one's own muscles or the muscles of another person and, more particularly, to a hand-held portable massage device that makes rolling contact with the human body to offer various levels of self or partner massage.
2. Description of the Related Art
Numerous designs have been proposed for devices that massage the human body, including those having rolling elements that manipulate the muscles underlying the skin. These rolling elements are designed to minimize friction with skin as moving pressure is applied to the subject's body.
One design for a massager utilizing a plurality of rollers is illustrated in U.S. Design Pat. No. 347,898. As shown therein, a handle has a plurality of rotating beads mounted thereon to make contact with the human body for massage. Although this design exhibits the ability to massage the body, the multiple beads are made of hard plastic material that can feel uncomfortably cold to the skin when applied to the body. Additionally, these multiple beads tend to pinch the skin and pull out hair, making it uncomfortable to the subject. Moreover, the narrow diameter of the beads creates discomfort when applied with pressure that is required to massage the muscles. As a result, a desired massage cannot be obtained.
A back massager is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,065,210 in which roller bearings are mounted to a hollow shaft and have magnets embedded therein. As with the previous device, these roller bearings can pinch the skin, pull hair, and otherwise create discomfort to the subject when forcefully applied to the skin.